Western Morning News (Saturday)

Mourinho sidesteps City finance question ahead of derby showdown

- BY SIMON PEACH

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is ready to go toe-to-toe with ‘ untouchabl­e’ Manchester City in this weekend’s eagerly-anticipate­d derby.

Pep Guardiola’s Premier League leaders lie in wait at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow as United look to emerge from a daunting double-header with another memorable away win.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s stunning volley was rendered meaningles­s on Wednesday as Mourinho oversaw a late 2-1 Champions League comeback win at Juventus – a side bracketed with City as among the continent’s best.

Wednesday’s 6-0 defeat of Shakhtar Donetsk underlined the quality of Sunday’s opposition, but life off the field is not as rosy as City face allegation­s that they have tried to cheat European football’s Financial Fair Play rules.

Asked if he felt United were operating on a fair playing field ahead of the derby, Mourinho said: “It’s difficult for me to answer because I focus on my job, I focus on the four lines.

“I focus on football. If you want to speak about their football potential, we can speak.

“And football potential starts with investment. After that, of course, there is a quality of the work and the quality of the organisati­on and I think that is untouchabl­e. But what behind, I cannot say.

“But, in this moment, I have only to think about football, and to think about football is just to think about Manchester City as a football team.”

The allegation­s about City’s finances have been made by German publicatio­n Der Spiegel, citing documents and private emails obtained from the whistle-blowing group Football Leaks.

City have described the reports as the product of an organised attempt to damage the club’s reputation, based on ‘materials hacked or stolen’.

Mourinho sidesteppe­d the allegation­s against Sunday’s opponents and instead praised a side that he hopes to go toe-totoe with, just as he did at Juventus and in the recent 2-2 draw at Chelsea.

The United boss said: “We are going to try. I cannot say we are going to be successful in our motivation­s, in our desire, but we played two difficult matches away against two very good teams, Chelsea and Juventus, and we managed to get good results.

“And even if the good results were not in our pockets, the performanc­es were there, the positive attitude was there, so we are going to try. But you are right, Manchester City is a very powerful team.”

Yet United know they can hurt Guardiola’s side, having come from behind to win 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium in April

is and delay their title party.

City are on course to retain the Premier League crown, but Mourinho is not getting worked up about cutting back a gap that already stands at nine points.

“If we drew it’s nine, if we lose it’s 12,” the United boss said. “I don’t think it’s the way to look at the match.

“You know, I think we have to just think about the match. The match is difficult enough by being an isolated event. If you want to put that match into the context of where we are, where we can be, then it becomes even more difficult.

“So, I just want to play the match as an isolated event: difficult match against a very difficult team. But I don’t think they think it’s an easy match for them.”

However, Mourinho knows they cannot afford the sloppy starts that have been all to frequent recently.

He said: “If we keep conceding goals before the opponent, it will arrive the day where we cannot come back. So, we have to make sure we grow up not just in our approach, – because that I think is clear that the team is growing up – but also we have to grow up in our compactnes­s and to start matches well. Which, I have to say against Juventus, it happened.”

Romelu Lukaku missed the trip to Turin with a hamstring complaint but could be back for the Manchester derby.

 ?? GETTY IMAGES ?? Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho
GETTY IMAGES Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho
 ??  ?? Newcastle manager has decisions to make for the game against Bournemout­h
Newcastle manager has decisions to make for the game against Bournemout­h

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